Felton attraction showcases gun fights of olden days

FELTON &GT;&GT; It was a good day for a train ride and a train robbery at Roaring Camp Railroads.

The tourist attraction hosted one of the last "Great Train Robberies," a show that takes place while passengers are aboard a train, much to the delight of roughly 200 people Saturday afternoon. The attraction was hosted at various points throughout the summer, with the Labor Day holiday weekend closing it out for the season.

It was so popular Saturday that organizers added an additional train ride at the last minute, said Joanne Hirasaki, director of sales and marketing for Roaring Camp.

The event is meant to entertain — not scare — the families who come through for the re-enactments, she said.

"It's just one of those hokey kind of things where they do a fast draw," she said.

The show, which usually takes place at the top of the hill, involves a dozen or so actors re-enacting a robbery during the time of six-shooters and saloons.

A train with six railcars putted through the forest with roughly 200 passengers aboard, most of whom were parents with their children. For about 30 minutes, the train moves through the woods, occasionally tooting the horn blow off steam.

Chris Spetzler, 42, brought his three sons to the train ride and was admiring the trees on the way up.

"I think it's great," he said. "It's hard enough getting them to take a hike in the redwoods."

At the top, the train comes to a halt with about a dozen actors dressed in clothing dating to the late 1800s and the robbery show begins.

"I like the guy in the top hat," said Nicholas Spetzler, 10.

In the middle of the show, one of the actors playing a robber boards the train and entertains the crowd, asking if they knew how a train robbery worked. Many shook their heads no with a grin on their face.

While he tries to get the passengers in one car to say it in unison, he eventually gives up and walks away.

After a few minutes, the "victims" become heroes as they pull their own weapons and a "shootout" ensued. Most of the robbers drop to the ground — some convincingly, some not so convincingly.

There's only one bandit left in the end, who taunts that nobody could hit him. A woman, who was part of the show, stepped forward with a shotgun.

"The only thing your good at is doing laundry," he mocks.

She retorts "I'll do your laundry" before pulling the trigger of the shotgun, "shooting" the bandit and ending the show.

The passengers erupted into applause before all the actors get up to receive their accolades.

"That was so cool," said Nicholas Spetzler, 10, who was reading his book before.

For a few more minutes, the train stays put while the actors interact with the children, handing out coins from the robbery and high fives.

After the show, an actor explained to the passengers that the guns in the show are real but the bullets are blanks.

Ligia Borlean, who attended with her husband and four children, came because her friend was in the show. While some of the passengers were surprised there was a show, Borlean's family expected it because their friend told them about it.

"We were all laughing when they were telling us it was a robbery," she said, adding that the show was fun for the family.